With Daniel Lippman
INTERNAL AUDITORS FORM A PAC: Internal auditors’ representatives in Washington are launching a political motion committee in hopes of expanding the influence of the industry — a few of whose products are poised to be at the middle of contentious policy battles in Congress starting next yr.
— The Institute of Internal Auditors’ recent PAC won’t have any impact on Tuesday’s elections. However the trade group is hoping for more of a say in what goes on within the capital — and to avoid getting caught within the crossfire on a variety of hot button issues that, ultimately, will come all the way down to internal auditors to implement — from corporate governance to cybersecurity, data privacy, climate disclosures and ESG and fraud.
— “Internal auditors play a critical role in providing objective assurance over a complete host of controls inside a company, a company, governments,” Mat Young, the association’s vice chairman of world advocacy, policy and government affairs, said in an interview. “Additionally they offer strategic advice and advisory services that relate to not only funds — not only type of the standard tax and budgeting matters — but internal auditors have a critical role in things like cybersecurity and data privacy management.”
— Increasingly, Young added, “corporations and governments are being asked to reveal their climate and sustainability related impacts. And so internal audit has a key role there.” That issue has sparked considerable blowback amongst Republicans who’re drawing up plans to hammer so-called “woke” capitalism should they regain control of Congress.
— IIA’s PAC is one tool the group is hoping to make use of to “enhance our presence and our influence” in Washington, Young told PI. “And we fully expect that there will likely be a significant debate next yr on cyber and data privacy and ESG and company governance. … So we’re excited to be giving our members a greater voice in decisionmaking.”
— Initially, the trade group will work to coach lawmakers and staffers about what internal auditors do, particularly because it pertains to compiling corporate disclosures. “We’re not wading into the controversy about whether or not it ought to be mandated by the U.S. government,” said Young. “But we’re serious about ensuring that as policies develop, that they are done appropriately, that internal audit is adding value and enhancing the standard of climate disclosures.”
Good afternoon and welcome to PI. Five days til Election Day. Breathe in through the nose, out through the mouth. Then send K Street gossip: [email protected]. And remember to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.
NEWS CORP ADDS SENATE GOP AIDE: “Media giant News Corp. has hired a recent lobbyist to assist its ongoing fight against the country’s largest technology corporations,” Bloomberg’s Emily Birnbaum reports.
— “Rachel Bissex, a former senior aide on the Senate Judiciary Committee, has garnered a repute for opposing Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Meta Platforms Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. on Capitol Hill. She’s now News Corp.’s vice chairman of federal government affairs, the corporate said on Wednesday night.”
— “Bissex previously worked for Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, and Colorado Republican Representative Ken Buck — two of the Republican party’s most fervent critics of the massive tech corporations.”
— “The move comes as News Corp. and a handful of smaller tech corporations gear up for a possible Republican takeover of the House or Senate. News Corp. and Fox Corp., that are each owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, have stepped up their lobbying push to manage the tech giants. They’ve targeted Republicans with the message that the businesses have gathered an excessive amount of power and control over the digital ecosystem.”
— “The Bissex hire is an element of a broader shakeup of News Corp.’s lobbying operation after longtime global head of presidency affairs, Toni Bush, retired earlier this yr. Bush was replaced by her colleague Todd Thorpe, who now heads the office.”
FIRST IN PI — HENSARLING, ATKINS JOIN AFP ADVISORY COUNCIL: Koch-backed political group Americans for Prosperity has tapped several big name conservatives to form a recent grassroots advisory council seeking to make the most of changing political winds in Washington come the beginning of the following Congress.
— Initial members of the council will include former Rep. Jeb Hensarling, former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins, political commentators Guy Benson and Erick Erickson, former Florida House Speaker Jose Oliva and Yancey Bros. Chair Jim Stephenson, who will help the group advance its grassroots influence — just as Republicans are set to brush into power in Congress again atop a wave of assorted economic concerns that AFP sees as a possibility for growth.
MCCARTHY FLOATS A SHAKEUP AT THE CHAMBER: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is escalating his clash with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, telling the group’s “board members and state leaders the organization must undertake a whole leadership change and replace current president and CEO Suzanne Clark,” Axios’ Hans Nichols and Jonathan Swan report.
— “McCarthy’s direct conversations clarify he is not going to work with Clark and her leadership team if Republicans win control and he becomes House speaker. But he’s charting a possible path forward for the business group to reestablish a relationship with the GOP conference.”
— “Mark Ordan, chairman of the board of directors, told Axios that Clark continues to have the ‘complete support’ of the manager committee. ‘The U.S. Chamber of Commerce team serves an important role within the day by day defense of American business,’ he said. ‘We serve our members, not a political party.’”
— “‘Staying true to that mission requires a wise, savvy, vigorous leader like our CEO Suzanne Clark,’ he said. ‘It’s for that reason that our governing body, the manager committee of the board of directors, is unequivocally keen about Suzanne’s performance and the importance of her ongoing tenure as CEO of the U.S. Chamber. She has our complete support.’”
WHICH CEOS DO (AND DON’T) HAVE BIDEN’S EAR ON THE ECONOMY: “In early 2022, because it became clear that a steep rise in consumer prices could be more severe and longer-lasting than his own aides had predicted, President Joe Biden began to widen the circle of individuals giving him economic advice,” Bloomberg’s Nancy Cook reports.
— “While his predecessors might need turned to Wall Street giants like Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Biden’s White House reached out to corporate executives corresponding to Apple Inc.’s Tim Cook, Bank of America Corp.’s Brian Moynihan, and the leaders of outlets Goal Corp. and Walmart Inc., based on people acquainted with the matter.”
— “Biden’s most frequent calls were with labor leaders, several of whom the president’s known for years. He talked occasionally with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers … and gleaned tidbits of data concerning the US economy from people he bumped into at church, golf and his grandkids’ field hockey games back home in Delaware.”
— “The president had much less contact with oil corporations, many tech CEOs and massive Wall Street players corresponding to Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Biden’s circle got here to reflect his political sensibilities: working-class people and union members more prone to shop Walmart than Amazon.com Inc. and hold accounts with Bank of America than investment firms.”
FOR YOUR THANKSGIVING TRAVEL SPOTIFY QUEUE: Strategic comms shop Seven Letter has launched a recent podcast, “Control,” hosted by a pair of former GOP Hill aides about — you guessed it — potential Republican control of Congress. Brendan Buck and Annalyse Keller will host the pod.
— The inaugural episode features Buck’s old boss, former House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Ryan’s advice — and words of caution — for McCarthy, his probable successor as GOP speaker. Future episodes following the election and into the brand new Congress in January will aim to peek across the corner to preview what to anticipate from a Republican majority on oversight and policy issues alike.
ABRAMS GROUP’S PAYMENTS SPLIT ETHICS WATCHDOG: The day that government ethics lobbyist Craig Holmanwas quoted in a POLITICO report calling massive legal payments from Stacey Abrams’ voting rights group to a law firm run by the campaign chair of Abrams’ Georgia gubernatorial campaign posed a “very clear conflict of interest,” an official from Abrams’ group, Fair Fight Motion, complained to Holman’s employer, watchdog group Public Citizen, The Latest York Times’ Michael Powell reports.
— “The subsequent day, Public Citizen retracted Mr. Holman’s statement, writing that its organizational position was ‘that the contractual arrangement described within the story is normal and non-objectionable. It raises no legal or ethical concerns.’ … The sequence of events raised questions on whether Public Citizen, an esteemed public interest advocate, backed down under pressure from liberal supporters of Ms. Abrams.”
— While Holman has stood by his stance, “his boss, Robert Weissman, the president of Public Citizen, disagreed. ‘I feel that Craig made a mistake,’ he said in an interview. ‘Our take is that he characterised something as a conflict that just isn’t. Hiring someone you already know as your counsel may be very common and never problematic.’” A GOP election lawyer defended the arrangement as well, but even he, like “nearly every lawyer contacted” by the Times, “questioned the mountainous legal bills accrued within the case.”
— Accenture has named Andrew J.P. Levy chief corporate and government affairs officer. He was most recently general counsel for growth markets at the corporate.
— John Wealthy has joined Touchdown Strategies as vice chairman, and Kirby Eule has joined as a director. Wealthy was previously a senior manager for marketing communications at Doma and Eule was previously a managing associate at Keybridge Communications.
— Chris Howard is now executive vice chairman for external affairs and recent product compliance at cigar maker Swisher International. He was previously senior vice chairman, general counsel and chief compliance officer for E-Alternative Solutions, a Swisher sister company.
— Ian Whitson has joined FTI Consulting as a senior director for presidency affairs. He was previously legislative director for Rep. David Rouzer (R-N.C.).
— John Wittman is joining PLUS Communications as a partner, and can open an office for the firm in Austin, Texas. He’s the founding father of Wittman Public Affairs and was previously communications director for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
— Terry Holt has joined Mercury Public Affairs. He’s the founding father of public affairs firm HDMK and is a George W. Bush, John Boehner and Richard Lugar alum.
— Antonio White is now senior vice chairman and public policy executive for U.S. federal affairs at Bank of America. He most recently was deputy assistant secretary for community engagement within the office of public affairs on the Treasury Department.
— Carrie Sheffield is now director of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for the American Employee and Center for American Values. She previously was a senior policy analyst for the Independent Women’s Forum.
None.
Lexicon PAC (PAC)
Moore Holding Co. PAC (dba Moore PAC) (PAC)
Turnout 2022 (Super PAC)
Alycia Farrell: Strategic Marketing Innovations (Smi) On Behalf Of Worcester Polytechnic Inst.
Aurora Strategic Advisors: City Of Cottage Grove
Grayrobinson Pa: Brevard County Fl
Grayrobinson Pa: Onstreet Media
National Women’S Health Network: Denys Symonette Mitchell
Atlas Advocacy: Zovio
Elevanta, LLC: Elevanta LLC
Elevanta, LLC: Elevanta LLC
Federal Business Group: Sts International, Inc.
Hogan Lovells US LLP: The Mackinac Technology Company
J.P. Deese & Associates, LLC: Solar Dex
Lester Health Law Pllc: Carepathrx
Magazine Publishers Of America: Magazine Publishers Of America
Mckechnie & Company: City Of Pittsburg, Kanas